The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) said Monday it will seek to impeach the foreign minister and the justice minister to hold them responsible for former Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup’s exit of the country despite an investigation in which he is a suspect.
Lee left Sunday to take office as ambassador to Australia, two days after an exit ban on him was lifted following questioning into suspicions that he exerted undue influence on an investigation into the death of a young Marine last year.
The DP has claimed it makes no sense to appoint a suspect as ambassador to a foreign country, arguing that it amounts to helping the suspect flee overseas. The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol said it did not know of the investigation and the exit ban before naming Lee to be the envoy.
“This is an unprecedented incident in which state powers were mobilized to get a key suspect to flee overseas,” Rep. Hong Ik-pyo, the DP’s floor leader, said during a party meeting. “This is clearly an obstruction of the investigat
ion and an abuse of power.”
Hong also said the DP will file a complaint against the justice minister, the foreign minister and all other officials involved in Lee’s appointment and departure from the country on charges of abusing power and obstructing an investigation.
“We will also push for the impeachment of the foreign minister and the justice minister,” he said.
DP leader Lee Jae-myung also urged Yoon to cancel Lee’s appointment and bring him home.
“The Yoon Suk Yeol administration appointed Minister Lee as an ambassador on the run and had him flee,” Lee said. “This represents the total collapse of the constitutional order.”
Source: Yonhap News Agency